Winter in Summer
by redisthenewblackington
Summary: After s01 e22, Red and Lizzie have a beach holiday.
1. Chapter 1

This fic is a gift to the lovely Lourdes, for the summer hiatus secret santa exchange. It follows the given prompt in which Red and Lizzie bathe together. For that reason, chapter two will be quite steamy, and the rating will be bumped up to an M.

Obligatory Disclaimer: I own not a single bit of The Blacklist, and my only gains are satisfaction and feels!

Chapter One

Being a Winter has its perks. Winters can feasibly dye their hair almost any color. They look great clothed in both pastels and vibrant jewel-toned hues like turquoise, amethyst, canary yellow, and of course, Red's favorite on Lizzie: ruby red.

But Winter skin is often sensitive, and Lizzie has no hope of hiding it when a blush creeps up her cheeks. With Red around, that seems to happen at an unfair frequency, much to his amusement. She's quite certain that he makes her blush on purpose.

"Oh, come on. You look so beautiful when you blush. I can't help myself, Lizzie." He says.

Yeah right, Red.

And the sun. Oh, the sun is particularly cruel to Winter skin. A day at the beach necessitates loads of sunblock. Lizzie can still tan, but she must guard herself carefully to prevent sunburn.

Red isn't nearly as sensitive, and despite going AWOL on The Navy, it quickly became clear to Lizzie that his heart is still on the ocean. They planned to spend the week sailing, scuba diving, and making love in one of his oceanside villas.

Red's slate-grey oceanside abode was three stories tall, miles from the main road, and only 100 yards from the sandy beach. Lizzie couldn't believe he actually owned it. "If you never spend more than two nights in the same place, what's the point?"

Red chuckled at her incredulity. "I didn't buy it, Lizzie. I seized it from a slimeball who couldn't pay up for services rendered. I'd planned on selling, but I'm quite fond of it. The security system is top-notch, and it's remote enough that I feel safe breaking my two-night rule. You should already know how much I relish a good, broken rule."

"Indeed, I do."

"You haven't even seen the outdoor shower and sauna yet. It's under the deck, and about 100 square feet. Huge! The walls and floor are teak, and a bench wraps all the way around the interior. The shower head is enormous, like standing in an Amazonian downpour. Tell me, Lizzie, have you ever taken ayahuasca with a Lakota shaman?"

Lizzie crossed her arms, waiting for him to finish.

He smiled at her. "Right. Well, ritualistic ayahuasca ceremonies are usually performed in a sweat lodge or sauna. It's a life-altering experience..." He trailed off, and then added, "If nothing else, I find tantric sex in a sauna to be particularly... stimulating. You haven't tried that either, have you?"

He was quite pleased to see her eyebrows arch in response. She was definitely curious about that one. Maybe, one day.

"So, wanna hit the beach for an afternoon swim?" Lizzie asked. They had only arrived an hour ago.

Oh, sure. Change the subject.

They changed into their swimsuits, packed a cooler, grabbed some towels and sunblock, and headed out.

While Red was decidedly an Autumn, his scars were somewhat sensitive to the sun, and he begrudgingly allowed Lizzie to slather his back with sunblock, since she batted her eyelashes and begged him to keep his shirt off.

Who could blame her? Those pecs...

She had let him pick out her new bikini, and bestowed upon him the honor of applying her sunblock. Red didn't complain. In fact, he took his sweet time, lifting the straps and running his hands beneath them, ensuring that no inch of her alabaster skin was unprotected.

They'd been on the run together for three months now, seeking out Berlin. They intended to only stay away until the threat was eliminated, and finally, it was, but Red talked Lizzie into a beach holiday before their return to DC. Who knows when they'd have another chance?

They had finally found each other, in the intimate way that Red had never hoped for outside of his dreams. If it meant living out the rest of his days just like this, Red wouldn't mind if they had never found Berlin.

Oh, and this. This! This is his favorite part of any vacation. The beginning. What a lush feeling! How he relished the knowledge that they had only just begun, and they still had the whole week stretched out before them. The first day holds promises that can only be kept.

Life was better than good. Perhaps he could even convince her to stay a little longer.

Red's beach was a private one, of course, affording their much-needed privacy. Consequently, they had no trouble locating the right spot to deposit their beach gear. With that done, Lizzie glanced up at Red, mischief glinting in her eyes.

"LAST ONE IN IS A ROTTEN EGG!" And she took off at a full-sprint to the water.

Hot on her heels, Red replied, "and the first one has to eat it."

She'd like that, actually.


	2. Chapter 2

Lizzie beat Red to the water and waded out until she was chest-deep. When Red caught up with her, she declared her triumph over him. "I win!"

Lighter in the water, Red playfully wrapped his arms around her and kissed the crook of her neck, enjoying the sea-salt taste of her skin. Lizzie's hands rested on his shoulders. "Yes, and I'm the rotten egg. You know what that means, right?" He pulled back a bit, inches from her face and gazing into her eyes.

"I do." She replied, planting a slow kiss on his lips, her own curling into a smile.

Without warning, she jumped up, pressing down on his shoulders, effectively submerging him under an approaching wave. She went under with him and climbed on his back before he resurfaced, wrapping her legs around his waist.

"Oh, sweetheart, you're gonna pay for that." He growled, miserably failing at his attempt to sound menacing.

"I'm counting on it!" She crowed, and then leaned forward to gently bite down on his earlobe.

Red gasped. "You asked for it!" He squeezed his arms against her legs, holding them tightly around his torso as he lowered his hands and began tickling the soles of her feet.

She squealed and tried to free herself, but his arms were clenched too tightly. She was stuck.

But two can play at this game.

She jabbed both hands into his armpits, giving him a taste of his own medicine, and Red emitted a girlish screech unlike any she could have imagined.

And he tried. He tried so hard to maintain his grip on her legs, but quickly let go in defeat.

When Red turned around to face her, she wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist while they laughed, feather-light and giddy. Lizzie thought they had effectively reached an unspoken truce, until Red leaned in to whisper into her ear, "You know you're playing with fire, Lizzie."

She pulled back so she could make meaningful eye contact when she replied, "Good thing neither of us are afraid of getting burned."

She grabbed the back of his head with one hand and the nape of his neck with the other, directing his lips towards hers. They kissed softly at first, but rather suddenly it deepened. Both moaned when her tongue entered his mouth. As the kiss intensified, it neither strayed from its sensuality nor increased in its speed.

Lizzie's fingers dug into his neck, his shoulders, his scalp, and anywhere else she could reach.

He lowered his hands and pinched her ass. When she instinctively jumped forward, moving against the pain, she inadvertently brushed up against him, reflexively causing her to grind down. Red responded by grabbing Lizzie and pulling her against him tightly. Her legs weakened and trembled, and she lost her grip on his waist. She would have dropped to the ocean floor without Red's firm grip on her.

They relished the sensations of their sudden nearness, aspiring to know each other inside and out, and taking the good with the bad. They trusted each other. Theirs was already a deep love, and this new feeling was better than surreal.

It was sublime.


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I still own nothing! Things are definitely much steamier in this chapter, and chapter 4 will be even more so. I'd call this a somewhat light M.

Chapter 3

They stayed outside on the beach for almost seven hours, until the sun began to set. They had spent the vast majority of that time in the water, and both were completely exhausted from fighting the waves.

On the short trek back to the house, Lizzie took Red's hand and said, "This is my favorite part about a day at the beach."

Red glanced at her but said nothing, waiting for her to elaborate.

"We've spent so much time in the water that I can still feel the waves pushing and pulling at my body. It's perfectly relaxing. I feel like a rag doll. Don't you feel it too?"

Red nodded and turned to plant a quick kiss on her shoulder. "Yes, I do."

"We're pretty gross though. I think I even have sand between my butt cheeks."

Red chuckled, "Yeah, me too."

"Ready to show me that HUGE outdoor shower and sauna you've been bragging about?"

He nodded. "In fact, I was going to insist on it, if you didn't ask. And be fair, please, Lizzie. I only brought it up once."

It wasn't often that she had the chance to patronize him, so she couldn't resist taking the presented opportunity.

"Ladies and gentlemen, Raymond Reddington, the fearsome Concierge of Fairness!"

He gasped, feigning offense.

"Just look." He said, opening the door and holding it for Lizzie to walk through first.

She whistled and nodded appreciatively. "Okay, then."

Red showed her where to hang her bikini and how to turn on the shower and adjust the temperature. "Why don't you go ahead and get started? I'll throw these towels in the wash and grab some fresh ones and toiletries." He kissed her temple and stepped out.

When the door closed behind him, she turned on the shower and decided to leave the water cool to soothe her sun-exposed skin. Red had reapplied her sunblock twice, but she could still feel the sun's effects making themselves known.

Now _that_ is unfair, Lizzie thought to herself.

She could have undressed then, but instead chose to wear the bikini while rinsing away the sand. Her eyes were closed and she faced away from the door. Over the sound of the shower, she couldn't hear Red's quiet return or his approach from behind her. She startled a bit when he gently placed his hands on her waist. He laid an open-mouthed kiss on her neck in apology, while untying her bikini top. She continued to face away from him while he slipped it off, wrung it out, and carefully hung it up to dry. He kissed her neck again, hooking his thumbs on her bikini bottoms and pulling them down to her knees. Then he kneeled behind her to slide them the rest of the way down, offering his shoulder for her to lean on as she stepped out of them.

When he paused to look up at her, gone was his intent to carefully hang the bottoms with the top. He tossed them aside and ran his splayed fingers up the backs of her thighs, thoroughly delighted by the view and how slippery her skin felt. His hands made their way back to her hips as he slowly stood up behind her.

"Lizzie, your tan lines! Sweetheart, you look like you're wearing a white bikini! Perfect little triangles over your breasts and rear end."

He was actually laughing at her. It was then that she finally opened her eyes to look at him. He was fully nude but still wearing his amber-lensed sunglasses. He looked silly.

"Raymond, why are you still wearing your sunglasses?" She lifted them from his face and set them on the bench in front of them. In truth, he had forgotten that he was still wearing them.

He looked down at her body and promptly forgot whatever witty response he had intended to spit out.

"Now it's even worse!" He was talking about her tan lines.

She frowned and looked down at her feet.

"Oh, sweetheart, I'm sorry. That came out wrong. Your tan lines are just more pronounced now. Honestly, I love them."

He was walking in a slow circle around her, openly gawking.

"Please forgive me. It's just. It's just. It's..." He was clearly flustered and aroused. He took a deep breath and tried again.

"I've only just become acquainted with your body, and now it's all different and brand-new again. You remember how I worshipped every inch of you the first time we made love. You were so patient and I wa-"

She cut him off. "No. I was anything but patient. YOU remember that. I was insanely turned on and you made me beg, with your prolonged and incessant teasing."

He came to a stop behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her tightly against him. She sighed and let her head roll back, resting on his shoulder.

"Forgive me, Lizzie, but now I'll have to start all over."

He stepped aside to grab her shampoo, squirted some into his palm, and returned to his place behind her. "Close your eyes, Lizzie."

She did as he asked and tipped her head back while he worked the shampoo into a lather in her hair, gently massaging her scalp with his fingertips. She tried to wiggle a bit and lean back against him. His breath caught. He was still hard, but he stubbornly stepped back, chiding, "Don't try to rush me. Just relax and feel."

He took his time rinsing out the shampoo, and then gave her the same treatment with her conditioner.

When he finished with her hair, Red grabbed her loofah and the body wash he'd bought for her the day before. It was her signature scent, Chanel No. 5. She always wore the perfume, but refused to spend fifty dollars on body wash. To Red, it was nothing. He just thought she should have it. She should have everything, and he was in a position to give it all to her, in many different ways...

He turned her around to face him, stepped closer, and brought the loofah up to the back of her neck.

"Red..." She sighed. "Don't I get a turn?"

"Of course you do, sweetheart." He brought one soapy hand to her shoulder, slowly tracing the white line of skin that was protected by her bikini top. "But I'm not done inspecting these pretty new lines of yours."

She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him, so they were pressed together from their chests to their knees. She hooked her chin over his unscarred shoulder, looking down her nose at the skin there. Red continued his path with the loofah, running it across and down her back, massaging the tired muscles under his hands.

Lizzie slowly raised one hand, and began poking at his shoulder slowly, and counting quietly. "One... Two... Three... Four..."

"I'm sure you have a perfectly sound reason for counting in the shower. Care to share that reason with me?"

She pulled back to smile coyly at him. "You have new freckles on your shoulders, Red, and I need to inventory each and every one of them."

He tilted his head, lips pursed, thoroughly enthralled by the sheer joy on her face. Then, he couldn't help grinning. "That's my girl."

Red leaned down to grasp the back of her knee, hitching her leg up and around him. Instead of kissing, they pressed their foreheads together, mutual gazes locked and unblinking. Their eyes were storms. Their irises spiraling and pupils dilating. Lizzie reached down to grab him, eliciting a throaty groan from Red that she felt more than heard.

Lizzie released her grip and lightly grazed her fingertips up and down his length, simultaneously placing open-mouthed kisses on his shoulder, his neck, up to his ear. She flicked her tongue across his earlobe and whispered, "So, tantric sex in a sauna, hm?"


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I still own nothing, and I'm not making money for this, either.

WARNING: This chapter is nothing if not sexually explicit. If you don't want to read about Red and Lizzie getting it on, then PLEASE MOVE ALONG. I'm not here to upset anyone.

Chapter 4

"Well... let's start with this." Red began "What do you already know about tantra?"

They were still embracing, but Red had progressed lower with the loofah, rubbing soft circles and gently pulling her up against him, and she couldn't help moving along with his hands, responding to his touch.

She admittedly knew very little about it. "I remember Sting saying he had tantric sex for 30-something hours, which sounds impossible. I almost hope that isn't true.. but.. doesn't it make you finish harder?"

He added more body wash to the loofah, and gently turned Lizzie around and embraced her from behind. "Sting was drunk when he said that."

Red slid one hand down her belly, and left it just below her navel, applying just enough pressure to keep her pressed against him while he gently washed her throat with the other. He leaned in closely to say, "But yes, extended orgasms are just one possible benefit."

"But it's achieved not by racing towards, or even focusing on it. There is no end goal. It's about being fully present. From start to finish, no matter how long it takes, it's about NOW. It's about what you feel now, and what your partner feels now."

His hand slid slightly lower on her belly, as the other lowered to her breasts, the loofah gently exfoliating as he worked it over her. Lizzie sighed, melting under his hands.

"It's about casting aside your inhibitions, opening up, allowing yourself feel everything, and giving yourself over fully to your partner."

Red slid his hand lower and pulled her tightly against him, grinding into the small of her back, making her gasp.

His voice lowered. "Tell me.. what you feel right now."

She shook her head, panting, at a loss for words. She only knew that she wanted him.

He planted a chaste kiss below her ear and stepped back and to her side, taking her left hand in both of his, and raising it to plant a kiss on her wrist, locking eyes with her. He lowered her hand but continued to hold it while he washed the entire length of her arm.

"Though drunk and unqualified to educate the populace about the practice of tantric sex, he more recently made a comment that rings true."

She canted her head, marveling at his ability to continue speaking. She understood that he wasn't actually trying to distract her, as so he often did to others. He was trying to share with her, and she hung onto every word.

"He said that his wife's body is his church."

Red released her hand and stepped behind her. He took her other hand, and kissed her shoulder. He laid kisses down the entire length of her arm as he slowly made his way to her other side, making eye contact again as he kissed her wrist. He held her hand again while he gently washed her other arm.

"Your eyes are wide open during tantric lovemaking. You watch your partner pleasure you. You watch while you pleasure your partner."

Lizzie turned toward Red and cupped his face with her hands, eyes boring holes into his, and said, "Because you're fully present."

Red dropped the loofah and nodded, bringing his hands up to the back of her head, gently combing his fingers through her hair. As she inhaled, he brought his lips close to hers and exhaled into her mouth. And as he inhaled, she breathed into his.

He stepped closer and lowered one hand to her neck, finding the pulse of her carotid artery, and brought his lips to the pulse on the opposite side. In the deepest of tones, he very slowly spoke into her neck, "You synchronize and share each other's breath." The vibrations from his low tone shot under her skin and echoed throughout her body, swiftly carried in her blood by her rapidly-beating heart.

She felt dizzy, but before she even swayed, he wrapped his arms around her, tightly pulling her against him in support.

It dawned on her then, that he always endeavored to be in sync with her, and to support her through everything, however he could.

With an arm wrapped around her shoulders, he stepped to her side and crouched down to place his other arm behind her legs and lift her up. He carried her to the bench and set her down on it. As he stepped away to retrieve the loofah and apply more body wash, Lizzie couldn't help wondering...

Why? He had yet to utter the words, but she already knew that he loved her. He must, and profoundly.

He kneeled down in front of her, and placed her feet in his lap. He worked them over thoroughly with the loofah, massaging her soles, and began speaking again.

"Reverence, Lizzie. I am not a man of god. If there even is a god, I doubt that god is a man. I worship you. Your body is my temple. I commune with you."

He left her feet in his lap, but refocused his attention on her calves, unknotting the wave-weary, solid muscles.

"That is the spiritual, mystic part of tantra that I've taken to heart. I would endeavor to recall that every time we make love, but it comes naturally to me. In many ways, you could say that we've enjoyed a great amount of tantric sex for the short amount of time that we've been intimate."

He parted her legs and crawled in between them, working her thighs one at a time.

Lizzie leaned down to grab the back of his head, directing it towards hers. She slid her hands down to his biceps, coaxing him forward, and he rose up to his knees, but only let her kiss him for a moment, before he redirected his mouth to her belly.

He splayed his fingers and gently raked them up and down her inner thighs, teasing without mercy, but she kept her eyes open. She watched while he brought one hand to the underside of her breast. She watched while he explored her hips with his mouth, tracing his tongue across the line made by her bikini.

Suddenly, he stood up and turned the water off, and walked over toward the opposite wall, his fingers tapped at small touchscreen by the door.

Lizzie was still watching him, of course, more than a little curious.

"Ah hah!" Red chortled, as music began playing, very softly. Piano. Lizzie kept her eyes on him as he continued tapping at the screen, her ears straining to identify the song, and a saxophone chimed in. She smiled. Of course Red would enjoy Coltrane. Red turned toward her just as her face lit up, and he couldn't have been more delighted to see that she was still focused on him, and that she must have recognized the song. He approached and reached for her hand, helping her to her feet and pulling her close.

He leaned in to kiss her, and steam began to billow from the vents.

Oh, yeah. She had forgotten about that.

"In a Sentimental Mood?" Lizzie asked.

"Yes." She wanted confirmation about the name of the song, and he knew it, but his reply sounded as if he was answering an entirely different question.

The benches against the walls were apparently unattached, because Red grabbed one and pulled it to the center of the room. "Sit." He said to Lizzie, pointing to the center of the bench.

She sat down, the way one would normally sit on a bench, with both legs on one side.

Red shook his head. "Not like that." He touched her knee and pointed to the other side of the bench, indicating that he wanted her to straddle it. Then he positioned himself astride the bench as well, right behind her, and went to work on her with his hands, pulling her tightly against him and encouraging her to lean back.

He wasn't interested in teasing her anymore. His lips and tongue latched onto her neck while he brought one hand to her breast, and stroked the other lower and lower, applying firm pressure. She tipped her head back, moaning his name while he inserted three fingers all at once, grinding against her lower back. She couldn't help rolling her hips against his hand, encouraging him to move harder and faster.

"Lizzie, open your eyes." She had forgotten.

He brought his other hand down, just above the first, moving it in heavy-handed circles, his breath catching as much as hers while she looked down to watch what he was doing.

She was wildly thrashing by this point, miles beyond any modicum of control. She craned her head around, seeking out his lips, needing to connect further. She had to taste him. When his tongue entered her mouth, she screamed into his, and he inhaled her breath and breathed back into her while she came.

And came.

And came apart completely.

He left his hands where they were, but stilled them, letting her rest and regain her bearings. She relaxed against him, feeling his heartbeat against her back. Suddenly she was very aware of his arousal, and the fact that he'd been hard for a very, very long time by this point.

He must be aching with need by now. She concentrated for a moment on the way he twitched and throbbed against the small of her back, even while the rest of him was still. And she wanted him inside of her, desperately. She wanted it more than she ever had, and she needed it still, at least as much as he did.

She turned around to face him, but scooted herself back a couple feet, and tucked her hair behind her ears, staring up at him as she leaned forward to take him into her mouth. As soon as her lips made contact, his hips bucked upwards involuntarily, and he gasped. She reached up and dragged her fingers up and down his stomach as he slid more deeply into her mouth.

And his face, contorted with ecstasy, was only barely recognizable to her. Cradling him with her tongue and swallowing as he repeatedly hit the back of her throat, Lizzie vowed to become more familiar with that face. He was vulnerable and yet, his eyes had never looked so bright.

But this was not enough.

As if he'd just read her thoughts, Red placed his hand on her cheek. His breathing became more heavy and his abs twitched and tensed under her hands.

Lizzie knew that he wanted her to stop, because he couldn't.

She sat up and scooted forward again, pressed her chest against his, and wrapped her arms and legs around him. Red brought one hand up to the back of her head, and placed the other on her hip, guiding her into position. With his feet planted firmly on the floor, he pushed up, sliding into her fully as he guided her hips down.

Lizzie tried to rock against him, but he held her hips firmly in place. "Red..." she whimpered, biting her lip and digging her nails into his back.

"Lizzie, tell me what you feel right now." He asked through clenched teeth.

"I... I feel you." He nodded and loosened his grip enough to let her rock back just once before stilling her again.

"Go on."

"I just.. feel you inside of me. Everywhere. That's all I know. There's nothing else to feel, Red. Please.."

He smiled and loosened his grip, bringing his lips up to hers while he pushed upward, allowing her to roll her hips to her heart's content, and to take him freely, however she wanted. Red was mesmerized. He was thoroughly stunned by everything she did to him.

"Lizzie.. you're everything. All I feel is you, too."

And she was clenched so tightly around him, soaring high and thrashing.

Red was quickly losing control of himself, as well. When he found her pulse and moaned against it, her mouth dropped open and he gripped her hips, pulling her tightly against him, grinding into her hard, thrusting wildly.

They fell apart together. She tightened around him, floored by his sounds, feeling him throb as molten heat gushed into her.

Gradually, she slowed and finally stilled, reveling in him while he was still inside of her.

When she caught her breath, Lizzie leaned back and brought her palms to his cheeks. "Red?"

He blinked. "Hm?"

"I thought you said I would get a turn."

He shook his head and smiled.

"Sweetheart, we still have the whole week." He took her hands in his, sighing in contentment.

"Red? Would you prefer if I called you Raymond?" She'd been switching back and forth between his nickname and given name for weeks now, trying to discern from his expression if he had a preference, but to no avail. It was time to hear it from him.

"You can call me whatever you'd like. You can even make up an entirely new name for me, if you so desire." He paused, trying to decide if what he was about to say would be too corny. Ah, to hell with it. "Just call me yours."

Lizzie smiled and nodded, with a noticeable glint in her eyes. She leaned forward to speak directly into his ear. "So... Amanda, why do you know so much about Sting?"

Post-chapter note:

I hope that lived up to everyone's expectations. I can't decide whether or not this is the end, and I'm very interested in everyone's opinion. A TREMENDOUS THANK YOU to all who have commented so far. It means the world to me!


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: It would be nice, but I don't own The Blacklist or any of its characters.

Author's note: This chapter is pretty much nothing more than gratuitous smut. If that bothers you, please move along. I'm tremendously appreciative of all the reviews I've gotten so far. They fuel me to write much more than I otherwise would. *LOURDES* I'm sorry about the long wait for this. I hope it's good enough to be worth the wait

Chapter 5

Lizzie had once considered herself a night person. She seldom falls asleep before midnight, and usually much later. She doesn't wake before nine without an alarm clock. Waking much earlier for work is a drudgery she slogs her way through miserably, just because she has to. She accepts that, somehow. It's what "responsible adults" do.

That was before she fell in love with Red. He closes his eyes as the sun starts to rise, and not a minute sooner. Even after their midnight marathon love-making sessions, it was only Liz who found herself sleepy. Red would lie with her until she fell asleep, but she'd often wake at 4 AM to find the bed empty. The first time it happened, Liz was immediately terror-stricken. She worried that someone had taken him, and that Dembe was dead downstairs. She bolted upright, immediately wide-awake, and ran down the hall to Dembe's room. Dembe barely stirred from his sleep when she ran in, panting.

Finding Dembe wasn't enough to allay her fears. Her next stop was the kitchen, but he wasn't there. She stood still then, just listening, ears straining to pick up even the slightest of sounds. The faint tinkling of ice in a glass tumbler floated inside through an open window. Red was out on the balcony, staring out into nothing, with a half-empty tumbler of scotch and a cigar.

That was almost two months ago. Now, if she happens to wake, she always knows where to find him. They never stay at a safe house or hotel without a private balcony. Even knowing about his nocturnal nature, she still gets up to set eyes on him, every single time. She can't fall back sleep otherwise. Sometimes, she joins him. Other times, she doesn't, sensing his need to be alone.

Lizzie understands that need. After enough time passes, loneliness can gradually morph into a guilty pleasure. Once loneliness is deeply settled into one's heart, while being obligatorially surrounded by people during the workday, a person may come to crave being alone. The company of others can start to feel like a chore- unpleasant and immeasurably taxing.

But now, here she is with Red, 24/7. "Alone time" had become normal for him. It stayed that way for two decades. Surely he missed being alone. He hated to brood in Lizzie's presence, and yet he needed to brood just the same.

No matter where they travel, Red's body automatically resets itself to sleep at sunrise. It's almost as if he's perpetually jet-lagged. He laughed mirthlessly when Lizzie told him that, but he didn't disagree.

He certainly had a lot to brood over. Lizzie knew that. Chasing blacklisters wasn't without risk, and not just for himself, but for Lizzie and Dembe too. Luli's fate could have easily been theirs as well. Add to the danger the real reason that he was doing it all, to get answers about that fateful Christmas eve, and insomnia becomes more than probable. It's inevitable. Sometimes Lizzie's worry for Red even keeps her awake, and while she's never told him so, she suspects that he already knows. That's one more reason to brood.

The next morning, after their romp in the sauna, Liz woke to find him actually in bed with her, seemingly fast asleep. Briefly she battled her desire for him, opting to let him get some much-needed shut-eye, but his eyelids fluttered open when she rolled over to put her arm around his waist. Red grabbed her hand before she could slide it up to his chest. Then he let it go, leaving her hand on his lower belly, and while he didn't move to direct her further, Lizzie knew what he wanted.

"You still want your turn?" He asked sleepily, his breath hot in her ear.

She only nodded as she slowly inched her hand lower.

The first time Red invited her into his bedroom, Lizzie was surprised to learn that he slept completely nude. She had pictured him (faaar too many times) sleeping in high quality, expensive pajama sets- the nightwear equivalent of an Ermenegildo Zegna suit. "Nope! If I'm in bed, it's naked time," Red practically sang in mock defiance. He then implored Lizzie to give it a try, but she's still holding off on that. The man wasn't exactly an expert on effective sleep rituals. For now, she's happy with her yoga pants and matching camisoles.

With their respective lower halves hidden beneath a thin blanket, Lizzie blindly navigated his body by memory. While lightly combing her fingers through the soft hair on his lower belly, she meant to come torturously close to his lengthening arousal. It wasn't her intent to touch him there yet, but Red rolled his hips the slightest bit toward her, sighing when her knuckles grazed against him.

"Raymond, that was dirty and unfair. I thought it was my turn," she scolded, quickly withdrawing her hand.

"Hmmmm Lizzie... You call that dirty?" He regarded her briefly, his eyebrows arched, just before plunging forward to sink his teeth into her left breast. Without the camisole, he would have broken her skin. Liz could only gasp in reply, at a loss for words.

"Ah, yes. Now we're getting closer," he said with a self-satisfied smirk.

"Jokes on you, Red. I like pleasure spiked with pain." A brief laugh snuck past her lips as she narrowed her eyes at him.

Red shook his head. "Oh my god, Lizzie. Tell me you didn't just quote Red Hot Chili Peppers during foreplay.

"Sorry, Amanda. I couldn't think of any appropriate Sting lyrics," she quipped, baiting him. Nothing gets him hard as quickly as some light antagonism, but Lizzie decided to stop there. Coyly she asked, "So, would you say the same? Do you also like a bit of pain?"

"I could say so, yes, but with certain qualifications." Ambiguous responses seemed to be engrained in Red's DNA.

"I understand that you want me to ask you to elaborate. It gives you a sense of having the upper hand, for knowing something that I don't. Well, that's just too bad, because I won't do it."

Whoops. So much for not antagonizing him.

With that, in one fluid motion, she swung one leg over him and grasped his nipples to pull herself up on top, straddling his waist. He sharply inhaled from the surprisingly sudden jolt of pain. "Does that fit into your little list of qualifiers?" she practically purred.

"Well, it didn't, but now, I suppose I could make enough room for it."

Lizzie tried to stir up some disdain. "That works for me. What an eloquent and diplomatic kiss on my ass, Red." Hovering above him to avoid grazing his erection, she leaned forward and slowly, sensually mouthed his sore chest, one nipple at a time, humming in delight, the gentle vibrations radiating tiny pulses of pleasure that seemed to echo and multiply in his blood.

Red groaned, "You're killing me, Elizabeth."

"You're so formal when you're horny," Lizzie observed aloud.

"That's inaccurate. I am ALWAYS horny. I am however, not always formal." What an awkward time for him to ramble for the sake of distraction.

"Ah. It seems that makes two of us, then." She captured his lips and hastily forced his mouth open with her tongue. Red closed his eyes and moaned into her mouth as she mercifully relaxed her thighs, allowing them to slowly slide outward. When she finally brushed against him, Lizzie's legs buckled and refused to support her. She collapsed on top of him, her hips reflexively rolling as she balanced most of her weight on her center.

She swatted Red's hands away when he tried to pull her more tightly against him. "Ohhh no you don't. It's MY turn." She could barely speak the words. He was actually doing what she craved, but she was stubbornly unwilling to give him the satisfaction of seizing control.

Liz quickly realized that she lacked the self-control to maintain such a painstakingly slow pace. She took a deep breath and whispered into his ear, "Can I take a raincheck on my turn? I don't think I can properly draw this out. I need you inside of me. I need you now."

Red couldn't have refused her demand if he tried, though he did not.

After indulgingly grinding against him for another minute, Lizzie finally found the strenth to push herself up and crawl backwards, raking her fingers down his torso as she went. She took him in her hand, drawing immense pleasure just from stroking him, feeling the physical proof of how badly he wanted her. She reveled in the throaty sound of Red's catching breath.

She wrapped her lips around the tip, pausing to briefly suck before plunging her mouth downward. She slightly struggled not to scrape her teeth against him, applying pressure with her tongue as she slowly pulled back, only to repeat the motion twice more.

Red's toes and fingers curled as he reflexively bucked upward, trying to press more deeply into the back of her throat. He moaned. "I didn't think this was what you meant about me being inside of you, although I technically am. Please don't take that as a complaint, because it isn't. Your mouth is exceptionally skilled."

She reached for his hands and squeezed them as he slid out of her mouth the final time.

"You're right." She crawled back up to his chest and started placing hot, wet kisses up and down the length of his neck, humming. Red moaned when she pushed herself back onto her haunches, grinding against him. She quickly pulled the camisole over her head and threw it across the room.

Red took that as his cue to take over. He growled and deftly rolled over, taking Lizzie with him, pressing her shoulders into the mattress. He latched onto one of her breasts while reaching to slide her panties down. He moved onto the other breast while she used her feet to kick them off entirely.

He settled on top of Lizzie, slowly sliding and grinding himself against her. She shuddered at the contact.

"Please, Red. I need you," she pleaded, her hips bucking, demanding more.

Finally, he began to ease himself inside of her. Lizzie lifted her hips in a bid to take in more.

"Oh no, sweetheart," he chided as he slid back out.

"RED!" she shouted in desperation.

He lowered his lips to Lizzie's in an attempt to comfort her. As he deepened the kiss, he began to press inside of her again. When he was only halfway in, Red shuddered and groaned. He steadied himself and took several deep breaths, concerned that he might be unable to last.

Lizzie knew how to make him lose control. She squeezed herself around him, causing him to roughly plunge forward, fully submerging himself. He pressed tightly against her without withdrawing, his weight bearing down to grind against Lizzie's most sensitive spot.

She squeezed tightly, sensitive enough to feel the blood pulsing through his swollen veins. Red throbbed and groaned, fighting the urge to violently move in and out. She wasn't making it easy for him.

He eased himself out and pressed back in. Gradually, they settled into a steady rhythm. Lizzie raked her nails down his back, scraping into the skin, coaxing him to increase the pace.

"Oh my god, Lizzie," Red huskily exalted. "Are you close? I need you to be close. I need you to let go and come with me, and I have to do it inside of you. Please, Lizzie."

Lizzie was nearing the cliff's edge, and Red's voice alone was almost enough to make her snap. "Yes! I need that! HARDER, RED."

She grabbed his ass, pulling him tightly against her with every thrust, lifting her hips and squeezing around him. Lizzie sank her teeth into his shoulder as she began to soar, and Red quickly followed suit, trembling above her, his thrusts ragged and erratic.

Red slid out and rolled Lizzie to her side. Spooning, he held her tightly and whispered a stream of barely-coherent adoration.

"So, Red, what else should we do today?" Lizzie asked.

"I'm happy to do whatever you want to do, especially if you'd like to do this again."

"Well, I'm not really sure... Let's start with a shower," she replied.

She didn't have to ask twice.


End file.
